Tokyo University of Foreign Studies Research Data Service
Tokyo University of Foreign Studies supports the promotion of open science, which includes open access, through the publishment of papers and academic data.
This site provides general information aimed at publishing academic data while also communicating information on initiatives pursued by Tokyo University of Foreign Studies to support the management of academic data.
What is open science?
Open science refers to research activities that are widely available to society and is a movement that is spreading around the world.
Open science is expected to contribute to the development of data-driven research through suitable management of academic data created or collected during the research process as well as the utilization of such data for society.
What is open access?
Open access refers to the publishment of papers and other data on the Internet so that they are available for anyone to use.
Open access enables anyone to freely obtain academic information without having to face various restrictions, which contributes to the development of academic research.
Open access also offers advantages to researchers, such as increased likelihood of their papers being cited.
On March 22, 2023, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies established its Tokyo University of Foreign Studies Academic Data Management and Disclosure Policy.
This is intended to be a set of guidelines for Tokyo University of Foreign Studies researchers to use when managing, preserving, or publishing academic data.
The suitable management and publishment of academic data contributes to the development of a wide range of different types of academic research.
Here, academic data refers to information collected or created during the University’s research activities, including both digital and non-digital data.
Examples of academic data include audio, image, video, and other primary data generated during the research process, analysis data generated from primary data, and information obtained as a result of analysis and presented as research results.
Researchers must comply with any relevant laws and regulations, university’s ethical standards or regulations, and other equivalent rules as they manage academic data according to the nature of that data and the requirements specific to each research field.
When sharing or publishing data, researchers must comply with ethical requirements based on the characteristics of each region and community in addition to the various standards and regulations above,
Note that the various standards, regulations, and other rules that must be followed are included in the policy explanation, so please refer to it as necessary.
The explanation includes details on the approach, reference information, etc. in line with the policy text.
The Tokyo University of Foreign Studies Prometheus-Academic Collections can be used to register or publish academic data.
The TUFS Library supports the publishment of academic data, so please feel free to start by contacting them.
Task flow
The researcher submits the two items below.
The Library staff confirms the publishing conditions and other details and then sends a registration application.
If necessary, they also ask about how the data should be handled, etc.
The researcher submits the two items below.
Based on the submitted metadata, the Library staff registers the academic data to the institutional repository.
After registration is complete, they send a URL.
Academic data flow
The flow below shows a model for how researchers publish data.
The steps from the start up until the end of each research project as well as tasks to be completed by researchers during each step are shown.
For details on each step and task, click the corresponding step.
- STEP0
Data management planning consists of defining the strategy that you plan to use for managing data and documentation generated within the project. It is about thinking upfront what’s the best way to avoid problems or unexpected costs related to data management, and set the conditions for your research data to achieve the highest possible impact in science, even after the end of the project.
Solutions regarding the handling of the data generated within a project is usually formalised in a Data Management Plan (DMP). A DMP is a document describing several aspects of the data management process which occur before, during and after the end of a project
Tasks：Data Management Plan Data Analysis
- STEP1
Data collection is the process where information is gathered about specific variables of interest either using instrumentation or other methods (e.g. questionnaires, patient records). While data collection methods depend on the field and research subject, it is important to ensure data quality.
Tasks：Data organisation Data quality Data storage Documentation and metadata Existing data Identifiers Data sensitivity
- STEP2
Data processing is the phase in the project where data is converted into a desired format and prepared for analysis. When data has been freshly collected, data processing includes some automated steps in a workflow that perform format conversion, quality check and preprocessing following a standardised protocol.
タスク：Data analysis Data organization Data quality Data provenance
- STEP3
Data analysis consists in exploring the collected data to begin understanding the messages contained in a dataset and/or in applying mathematical formula (or models) to identify relationships between variables. The steps of the workflow in the analysis phase will often be repeated several times to explore the data as well as to optimize the workflow itself. According to the different types of data (quantitative or qualitative) the data analysis methods will differ. Data analysis follows the (often automated, batch) data processing stage.
タスク：Data analysis Data organisation Data storage
- STEP4
Data preservation consists of a series of activities necessary to ensure safety, integrity and accessibility of data for as long as necessary, even decades. Data preservation is indeed more than just data storage and backup, since data can be stored and backed up without being preserved.
タスク：Data organisation Data publication Data storage Documentation and metadata
- STEP5
Sharing data means making your data known to other people.
You can share your data with collaboration partners in the context of a collaborative research project, or you can publish your data to share it with the global research community and society at large.
タスク：Data publication Data storage Documentation and metadata Identifiers Licensing Data sensitivity
- STEP6
Data reuse means using data for other purposes than it was originally collected for. Reuse of data is particularly important in science, as it allows different researchers to analyse and publish findings based on the same data independently of one another.
タスク：Data analysis Existing data Identifiers Licensing
Source：ELIXIR. “RDMkit“.
Policy trends
- Basic Document on Open Science by JPCOAR (2021.7 Issued)
This document provides information on major policy documents related to open science in Japan (and is updated as necessary).
For researchers
- Research Data Management: From Daily Life in a Lab by Kyushu University Library (2021.6 Issued)
This e-learning document was created to raise the awareness of researchers related to research-data management and publishment in response to budget measures called for by the Project to Spearhead the Promotion of Open Science (Japan Association of National University Libraries, fiscal 2020). - Learning material: “Research Data Management for Researchers” by JPCOAR Research Data Working Group (2020.10 Issued)
These materials were created for researchers belonging to universities, research institutes, and other organizations from the perspective of research supporters. - Open Access Handbook, 2nd ed. by the University of Tokyo Library System (2017.10 Issued)
This handbook explains the history of open access and methods for achieving various types of open access to enable researchers to choose suitable methods for disclosing their academic research results according to their research styles and research communities. - Promoting Open Access to Academic Papers, etc. by the Cabinet Office (2023.10.30 Issued)
This document was disclosed to summarize the results of a conference by expert members of the Council for Science, Technology and Innovation (CSTI).